Renfroe revisiting college experience vs. Indians

By Corey Brock / MLB.com

SAN DIEGO -- Outfielder Hunter Renfroe, the Padres' first-round pick in the 2013 First-Year Player Draft, isn't so far removed from his college days that he couldn't appreciate Friday's exhibition game against the Indians at Fowler Park on the campus of the University of San Diego.

"I thought those days were behind me," Renfroe joked. "But any opportunity presents itself, you want to take advantage of it."

Renfroe, the No. 13 overall pick out of Mississippi State, was one of several players who will begin the season with Class A Advanced Lake Elsinore who will suit up for these games against the Indians.

Lake Elsinore is located about one hour north of San Diego.

Renfroe was hitless in three at-bats this spring as a Minor League extra. He spent the rest of the time in Minor League camp, where he got off to a slow start because of a sore right hamstring.

"I was able to play in six or seven games and finish the spring out well," he said.

The Padres are letting Renfroe essentially skip over Class A Fort Wayne -- he played 18 games there last season -- to test him in the hitter-friendly California League. He's looking forward to the challenge.

"I just want to play every day," he said. "I want to learn the everyday grind and see how I need to do things and where I need to make adjustments."

Renfroe hit .271/.308/.459 in his first 183 professional plate appearances, most of which came at short-season Class A Eugene of the Northwest League.

Bone bruise might force Quentin to DL

SAN DIEGO -- Padres outfielder Carlos Quentin is a candidate to open the season on the disabled list with a bone bruise in his left knee.

Manager Bud Black told reporters before Friday's exhibition game against the Indians that a disabled-list stint is a "possibility" for Quentin, who injured the knee while making a sliding catch in the outfield on March 16 and last played in a game on March 24.

"His knee has been acting up a little bit, he's not going to be in there tonight [Friday] and we're going to continue to evaluate it. It's been bothering him for a few days. It sort of reared itself the last couple of days. "

Quentin hit .152 in 33 at-bats this spring, as the team brought him along slowly after he had right knee surgery in September. That marked the third surgery on his right knee since March 2012.

The Padres will likely wait until Saturday or possibly right up until the deadline on Sunday to set their 25-man roster to see what Quentin's status is.

The Padres could keep two of the following three players: Tommy Medica, Xavier Nady or Kyle Blanks. Nady and Blanks have extensive outfield experience, while Medica started learning the position during Spring Training. However, Medica, who hit .333 with 22 hits and three home runs this spring, might be on the team at any rate.

Outfielder Chris Denorfia, who last played in a Cactus League game on March 18, stayed back in Arizona on Thursday and played in a Minor League game. He estimated that he got "seven or eight at-bats" in the game. He thinks he will be fine for Sunday's Opening Night game against the Dodgers.

"It's gone as how the training staff hoped it would," Denorfia said.

Roach surprises himself, makes Padres as reliever

SAN DIEGO -- Before going to Spring Training last month, right-hander Donn Roach sized up the Padres' roster in terms of pitching and came to a conclusion about what his chances were of making the 25-man roster for Opening Day.

"I thought I was going to Triple-A," Roach said.

Roach, 24, has never been so happy to be wrong, as manager Bud Black pulled him into his office on Friday to inform him he made the roster as a reliever.

"This was unexpected," Roach said, smiling. "… In the best way possible."

Roach, who has a plus-sinker and gets a lot of ground balls when he's going well, impressed the staff in Spring Training, posting a 3.00 ERA in 15 innings. Roach can be used in middle and long relief.

Last spring -- his first with the team after being acquired from the Angels in 2012 -- Roach had a 1.93 ERA, but he appeared in only five games before being sent to Minor League camp. This spring, he avoided being cut.

"I came in with a different attitude this spring and working as hard as I can. Last year, there was a lot of hype around me coming off the [2012] trade, and I let it get to me," he said.

Short hops

• Roach wasn't the only player to find out that he made the team's 25-man Opening Day roster. It wasn't much of a surprise, but Black informed left-hander Robbie Erlin that he made the team as the fifth starter. The Padres won't need their fifth starter until April 8 against the Indians. Erlin had a 1.46 ERA in 12 1/3 innings.

• While Sunday's outing against the Dodgers will be Andrew Cashner's first big league Opening Day start, he's made an Opening Day start before -- in 2010 in the Double-A Southern League pitching for the Cubs' Tennessee Smokies affiliate against the Mississippi Braves.

"That was probably one of my better starts," Cashner said. "… I stuck out the first nine hitters of the game."

Cashner struck out 10 hitters in 4 1/3 innings in that game, allowing three runs for a no-decision. He didn't stay with Tennessee long, as he was promoted to Triple-A Iowa and then made his Major League debut with the Cubs on May 31 of that season.

• The Padres will place right-hander Josh Johnson on the disabled list on Sunday when they set their 25-man roster before the opener against the Dodgers. Johnson suffered a strained flexor muscle in his right forearm during a start on March 18. He's been shut down for a period of 10 to 14 days before he'll be re-examined. He said Friday that he was "feeling good."

• Outfielder Will Venable was a late scratch on Friday with a stiff back, Black said.

• Reliever Dale Thayer left Friday's game after being struck in the right forearm by Yan Gomes' single with two outs in the fifth inning. Black called the injury a bruise.

Corey Brock is a reporter for MLB.com. Keep track of @FollowThePadres on Twitter. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.